US church locations from public map data: church office contacts, fields, by-state counts and prices.
How many churches are in the US?
The most complete count is 356,642 congregations of all faiths, from the 2020 U.S. Religion Census run by the Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies (ASARB). It covers 372 religious bodies, 354 of them Christian, but the census publishes no total for churches alone. For churches, the closest figure is about 358,000: the Hartford Institute for Religion Research estimates about 335,000 Protestant and other Christian churches and 23,000 Catholic and Orthodox churches, out of roughly 373,000 religious congregations of all faiths. Hartford's 373,000 sits midway between the census count and a higher estimate of 384,000.
Church locations listed on public maps give a higher figure. Overture Maps places (release of 2026-09-23) lists ~442,000 church locations in the 50 states and DC. Map data keeps some closed churches, lists some churches twice and lists separate buildings, so this count is an upper bound on congregations with a map listing, not a count of congregations. The stricter versions of our count, ~366,000 listings marked open and ~371,000 at a confidence of 0.8 or higher, sit closer to the census figure.
The 2020 U.S. Religion Census counted 356,642 congregations of all faiths, reported by 372 religious bodies.
356,642The Hartford Institute for Religion Research estimates roughly 373,000 religious congregations, about 335,000 of them Protestant and other Christian churches and 23,000 Catholic and Orthodox churches.
roughly 373,000Overture Maps places (release of 2026-09-23) lists ~442,000 church locations in the 50 states and DC, an upper bound on congregations with a map listing.
~442,000~366,000 of those church listings are marked open by their source, and ~371,000 have a confidence score of 0.8 or higher.
~366,000The median US church has 70 regular worship participants, according to the 2025 Faith Communities Today national survey.
70What counts as a church?
A congregation is a group of people who worship together; a church building is where they meet; a map listing is an entry for a place on a map. Each count below measures one of these. Our own counts are rounded; the others are quoted exactly.
Congregations, all faiths
What it counts: Congregations reported by 372 religious bodies, 354 of them Christian
Latest figure: 356,642
Source and date: 2020 U.S. Religion Census, ASARB, 2020
Religious congregations, estimate
What it counts: The midpoint of the census count and a higher estimate of 384,000
Latest figure: roughly 373,000
Source and date: Hartford Institute for Religion Research, accessed 2026-10-03
Christian churches, estimate
What it counts: Of the 373,000: Protestant and other Christian churches (about 335,000) plus Catholic and Orthodox churches (23,000)
Latest figure: about 358,000 (our sum of Hartford's two figures)
Source and date: Hartford Institute for Religion Research, accessed 2026-10-03
Church locations on public maps
What it counts: Map listings tagged as a church or named as one, not marked closed, confidence 0.5 or higher, duplicates removed
Latest figure: ~442,000
Source and date: Overture Maps places, 2026-09-23
Church listings marked open
What it counts: The same listings, only those whose source marks them open
Latest figure: ~366,000
Source and date: Overture Maps places, 2026-09-23
Church listings at confidence 0.8 or higher
What it counts: The same listings, only those the source is surer exist
Latest figure: ~371,000
Source and date: Overture Maps places, 2026-09-23
Places of worship on public maps
What it counts: Church locations plus synagogues, mosques, temples and other places of worship
Latest figure: ~455,000
Source and date: Overture Maps places, 2026-09-23
The census counts congregations whether or not they own a building. A map counts places. One congregation with two campuses is two map listings, and three congregations sharing one building can be one.
Why the map count is higher than the census
The map count is higher mainly because of how map listings age and repeat. We checked the category rules against every worship category in the Overture release, so the gap is not other kinds of places counted as churches. It comes from three things:
- Closed churches. A church that closes often keeps its map listing. ~76,000 of the church listings have no open or closed status at all.
- Repeat listings. One congregation can be listed under two names, such as its full name and a short name, or at two addresses.
- Several buildings. One congregation with several campuses or buildings is several listings.
The map also misses congregations: small churches that meet in homes, schools or rented rooms often have no listing. So the map count overstates churches in most states and understates them in a few.
Church map listings by state
Texas has the most church locations on the map, ~39,000, followed by California with ~30,000 and Florida with ~25,000. The table counts listings by the state of their address, with the rate per 100,000 residents and each state's share of the US.
| State | Listed on public maps | Per 100,000 residents | Share of US total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | ~39,000 | 124.3 | 8.9% |
| California | ~30,000 | 75.9 | 6.8% |
| Florida | ~25,000 | 107.3 | 5.7% |
| North Carolina | ~23,000 | 209.0 | 5.3% |
| Georgia | ~21,000 | 185.0 | 4.7% |
| Ohio | ~17,000 | 143.8 | 3.9% |
| New York | ~17,000 | 85.3 | 3.9% |
| Pennsylvania | ~17,000 | 130.4 | 3.9% |
| Tennessee | ~16,000 | 216.8 | 3.6% |
| Illinois | ~15,000 | 119.4 | 3.4% |
| Alabama | ~14,000 | 278.8 | 3.3% |
| Virginia | ~14,000 | 160.7 | 3.2% |
| Michigan | ~13,000 | 125.7 | 2.9% |
| South Carolina | ~12,000 | 221.2 | 2.8% |
| Indiana | ~11,000 | 159.9 | 2.5% |
| Missouri | ~10,000 | 166.4 | 2.4% |
| Kentucky | ~9,800 | 212.3 | 2.2% |
| Louisiana | ~9,800 | 211.3 | 2.2% |
| Mississippi | ~9,700 | 328.4 | 2.2% |
| Maryland | ~8,500 | 135.9 | 1.9% |
| Arkansas | ~8,400 | 268.5 | 1.9% |
| New Jersey | ~8,300 | 86.8 | 1.9% |
| Oklahoma | ~8,000 | 194.9 | 1.8% |
| Wisconsin | ~6,700 | 112.4 | 1.5% |
| Washington | ~6,700 | 83.7 | 1.5% |
| Minnesota | ~6,500 | 111.7 | 1.5% |
| Massachusetts | ~5,600 | 78.2 | 1.3% |
| Arizona | ~5,400 | 71.0 | 1.2% |
| Iowa | ~5,200 | 161.8 | 1.2% |
| Kansas | ~5,100 | 171.4 | 1.2% |
| Colorado | ~4,900 | 81.6 | 1.1% |
| West Virginia | ~4,100 | 233.8 | 0.93% |
| Oregon | ~4,000 | 94.0 | 0.91% |
| Connecticut | ~3,500 | 96.1 | 0.8% |
| Nebraska | ~2,900 | 143.7 | 0.66% |
| New Mexico | ~2,500 | 115.3 | 0.55% |
| Nevada | ~1,800 | 55.6 | 0.41% |
| Maine | ~1,800 | 124.9 | 0.4% |
| Idaho | ~1,700 | 85.1 | 0.39% |
| Utah | ~1,600 | 46.0 | 0.37% |
| Montana | ~1,600 | 141.5 | 0.37% |
| South Dakota | ~1,600 | 170.4 | 0.36% |
| Delaware | ~1,400 | 128.6 | 0.31% |
| Hawaii | ~1,300 | 91.1 | 0.3% |
| New Hampshire | ~1,300 | 90.9 | 0.29% |
| North Dakota | ~1,200 | 153.1 | 0.28% |
| Rhode Island | ~980 | 87.8 | 0.22% |
| Alaska | ~970 | 131.3 | 0.22% |
| District of Columbia | ~900 | 129.5 | 0.2% |
| Wyoming | ~840 | 143.4 | 0.19% |
| Vermont | ~770 | 119.6 | 0.17% |
Counts are rounded.
These are counts of map listings from Overture Maps places (release of 2026-09-23), rounded. Rates use US Census Bureau population estimates for July 1, 2025. 46 of the 50 states and DC have 1,000 or more church locations. Contains data from Overture Maps Foundation, licensed under CDLA Permissive 2.0.
How many churches are in each state?
The South has the most churches per resident. Mississippi has 328.4 church locations per 100,000 residents, Alabama 278.8 and Arkansas 268.5. California has the second-largest count but one of the lowest rates, 75.9 per 100,000, and Nevada (55.6) and Utah (46.0) have the lowest.
Utah shows where the map runs short. It has ~1,600 church locations on the map, while the 2020 U.S. Religion Census counted 6,018 congregations there. The census count is far above the map count, partly because congregations that share a building can appear as one listing. Across the 50 states and DC, the map count is above the census count in 41 and below it in 10. For any one state, read the map count and the census count side by side and treat neither as exact.
State pages put the two counts side by side, with each state's cities and map tags: Texas, California, Florida, North Carolina, Georgia, Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Illinois, Alabama, Virginia, Michigan, South Carolina, Indiana, Missouri, Kentucky, Mississippi, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Washington, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Colorado and Utah.
Churches by map category
69% of church listings carry only the tag "Christian, tradition not given", so map tags say little about denominations. Baptist is the largest named tag, followed by Roman Catholic and Pentecostal.
Map category tags, not denominational shares.
| Category | Places |
|---|---|
| Christian, tradition not given | ~303,000 |
| Baptist | ~74,000 |
| Religious organization with a worship name | ~24,000 |
| Roman Catholic | ~19,000 |
| Pentecostal | ~12,000 |
| Anglican or Episcopal | ~4,100 |
| Protestant, denomination not given | ~2,800 |
| Jehovah's Witnesses | ~2,000 |
| Methodist | ~850 |
| Lutheran | ~420 |
| Place of worship, no faith or tradition tag | ~410 |
| Eastern Orthodox | ~90 |
| Greek Orthodox | ~10 |
| Armenian Apostolic | 8 |
| Russian Orthodox | 8 |
Counts are rounded.
The table shows the largest category tags among church listings, as their sources gave them; other faiths are left out. Many churches of a named denomination carry only the generic tag, and "Place of worship, no faith or tradition tag" is a generic tag, not a count of other faiths. The census, which counts by religious body, is the better source for denominational shares.
How big is a typical church?
Most US churches are small. The 2025 Faith Communities Today national survey, as reported by the Hartford Institute for Religion Research, found a median of 70 regular worship participants per church. A list of church locations counts large and small churches the same way, one row each.
What these numbers don't show
Congregations. A map listing is a place, so our count is neither a count of congregations nor of buildings.
Churches open today. Closed churches can keep their map listing, and the source's open or closed status is often missing.
Churches without a listing. Congregations that meet in homes, schools or rented rooms are often not on the map.
Denominations. Map category tags are often generic and sometimes wrong. They are not denominational shares.
Attendance or membership. None of these counts says how many people attend.
LimitsDownload the data
churches-register-2026-10.csvCSVCC BY 4.02026-10-03
nodilist.com, "How many churches are in the US?", church locations from Overture Maps places release 2026-09-23.1 with 2020 U.S. Religion Census and Hartford Institute figures, https://nodilist.com/churches/how-many-churches/.
- churches-register-2026-10.csv: church locations listed on public maps in each state and DC, with the rate per 100,000 residents, the share of the US and the rank, from Overture Maps places release 2026-09-23.1.
The CSV holds our map counts only, exact; the tables on this page round them. It does not include the U.S. Religion Census figures, which are copyright ASARB. It is licensed under CC BY 4.0. You can reuse it, including commercially, if you credit nodilist.com and link to this page. Contains data from Overture Maps Foundation, licensed under CDLA Permissive 2.0.
Looking for church contacts?
The church email list is built from the same map data, one row per church location, with the church office email and phone the church publishes, its website and its denomination where the church names one. Its page has the columns, the counts by state and the prices. You can order it nationwide or by state.
Church email listSources
- Clifford Grammich, Erica Dollhopf, Mary Gautier, Richard Houseal, Dale E. Jones, Alexei Krindatch, Richie Stanley and Scott Thumma, 2020 U.S. Religion Census: Religious Congregations & Adherents Study, Association of Statisticians of American Religious Bodies (ASARB), 2022; Preface and Introduction (file dated 2023-03), https://www.usreligioncensus.org/sites/default/files/2023-03/2020_USRC_Preface_and_Introduction.pdf (accessed 2026-10-03)
- ASARB, 2020 U.S. Religion Census, 2020_USRC_Summaries.xlsx (file dated 2023-06; sheets 2020 US Summary and 2020 State Summary; single figures only), https://www.usreligioncensus.org/sites/default/files/2023-06/2020_USRC_Summaries.xlsx (accessed 2026-10-03)
- Hartford Institute for Religion Research, Fast Facts about American Religion (undated page; quotes the 2025 Faith Communities Today national survey), https://hirr.hartfordinternational.edu/fast-facts-on-american-religion/ (accessed 2026-10-03)
- Overture Maps Foundation, Places theme, release 2026-09-23.1, https://docs.overturemaps.org/guides/places/ (accessed 2026-10-03); licensed under CDLA Permissive 2.0, https://cdla.dev/permissive-2-0/
- US Census Bureau, Vintage 2025 state population estimates (July 1, 2025), via FRED, for the rates per 100,000 residents (accessed 2026-10-03)